Insertion (O:FB)
Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Galaxy at War Main Page: Operation: First Breach The adventure opens with the heroes being summoned to the tactical operations center aboard The Solidarity, a Venator-Class Star Destroyer that serves as the flagship for Jedi Master Ezar Elasra's small but successful Min Rim battle group. This adventure presumes that the Republic has some reason to trust the heroes, either because they have worked with the Republic before, or because they come recommended by a trusted ally. The heroes receive not only a summons, but directions that a Theta-Class Shuttle will pick them up and transport them to The Solidarity. Be sure to give the heroes time to set their affairs in order, do any shopping they need to, or perform any downtime activities they wish before the shuttle arrives. Although there should be a sense of urgency about the communiqué, this will be the last chance the heroes will have to do these things until the end of the adventure. The shuttle arrives at the appointed time and location- somewhere near the heroes' location when they are ready to go- and within hours they are dropping out of Hyperspace at a rendezvous point. The Solidarity appears to be much the same as all of the other Venator-Class Star Destroyers, although it has clearly seen its share of battle. Repair crews work all over the outside of the ship, patching holes that were punched in the hull by turbolaser fire. As the shuttle docks with The Solidarity, describe the battle damage to the cruiser, the Space Suit-wearing repair crews, and the gaping holes that reveal deep gouges into the interior of the ship. The Briefing The heroes are escorted by a pair of Clone Troopers to Master Elasra's private briefing room. Ezar Elasra is a tall, powerfully-built Barabel with crimson scales covering most of his body. He has donned a functional set of black Jedi robes, and paces before a hologram of a yellow planet hovering above a tactical display. Attending Master Elasra is the captain of The Solidarity, a meticulous looking Human from Corulag who introduces himself as Captain Ralen. Also in the room, peering closely at the tactical display, is a Clone Commando with his helmet removed. Captain Ralen introduces the commando as Commander Husk, and then dismisses the clones that escorted the heroes to the briefing room. Once introductions have been made, Master Elasra begins the briefing. Read the following aloud: "The planet you see before you is Tirahnn, a world on the Peremian Trade Route. Some months ago, the planet fell into Separatist hands, and we could not spare the resources to oppose them. Since that time, the Separatists have used their control of the world to disrupt trade and supply lines, and the Jedi Council has tasked us with dislodging the Separatists and reopening the trade route." "This display shows the Separatist defense fleet around Tirahnn. As you can see, the planet is extremely well defended, and a direct attack against such a fleet would be costly." "Tirahnn's capital city possesses a Planetary Ion Cannon that was used unsuccessfully in its defense when the Confederacy took control of the planet. We believe that a small strike force can slip past the blockade, seize control of the Planetary Ion Cannon, and use the cannon to launch a surprise attack against the fleet in orbit. With a large amount of the defense fleet disabled by the Planetary Ion Cannon, out fleet will jump into the system, engage the remaining defenders, and launch a full-scale ground assault to liberate the planet." At this point, it should be clear to the heroes that they are to be the strike force. Captain Ralen then continues his briefing to explain that the heroes will be transported by an LAAT/s Gunship used by the Republic Commandos for covert insertion into enemy territory. The heroes will also be accompanied by a squad of four Clone Commandos and a contingent of six Clone Troopers. While the heroes perform their assigned mission, the Clone Troopers will remain at the landing site to guard the LAAT/s Gunship from snooping Droids. The Clone Commandos have their own mission: infiltrate and sabotage the primary Separatist military base on Tirahnn. The Republic needs the heroes because they can pass as citizens of Tirahnn, while the clones would be recognizable even without their armor. This is a good chance for the heroes to ask questions about the mission. Below are some answers to common questions the heroes may have: * How do they find the Planetary Ion Cannon? Republic Intelligence has pinpointed the cannon's location. The data will be transferred to the heroes' Datapads. * How are they supposed to capture the Planetary Ion Cannon? That is a decision largely up to them. The heroes are expected to make an on-site assessment of how to capture the cannon. Republic Intelligence has identified a Zygerrian Separatist, identified as Commander Zolghast, as the man in charge of the cannon's security. Should the heroes encounter Zolghast, their orders are to capture him alive and hold him for interrogation. * What does the Republic know about Commander Zolghast? He is a paranoid man who has tried to remain hidden even during the occupation. He issues commands from a remote location, but little else is known. It is believed that he is the only one with the firing codes necessary to operate the Planetary Ion Cannon. * What kinds of opposition are they likely to face? The Separatists have a wide array of Droids and Vehicles occupying the planet, but for the most part the heroes should only have to deal with Battle Droids in capturing the cannon. Smooth Landings Once the heroes have prepared for the mission, they are loaded onto the LAAT/s Gunship and the mission begins. The gunship disembarks from The Solidarity and then jumps to lightspeed, leaving the fleet behind. Within a matter of hours, the ship emerges from Hyperspace well away from the planet of Tirahnn. From there, the pilot powers down most nonessential systems and the ship begins the long, nearly silent trip from the edges of the system toward Tirahnn itself. After several hours, the planet Tirahnn fills the forward viewport of the ship. The Clone Pilot calls back to everyone that they are going to full silent mode and orders that all electronics be shut down (Including Droids). Read the following description: The transport glides silently through space, appearing as a black speck to anyone that happens to be observing from one of the Separatist ships. There are long, tense moments that pass as the dropship passes through the Confederacy blockade, but no turbolaser fire flashes after you. The ship begins to rattle as it plunges into atmosphere, seeming to be nothing more than a meteorite burning up on entry. Once clear of the blockade, the Clone Pilot begins firing up the dropship's systems to bring it in for a covert landing on the night side of the planet. However, before the pilot has a chance to set up a suitable approach vector, the entire ship bucks as it is tossed around by errant wind currents. There is the sound of tearing metal, and alarm klaxons begin to sound throughout the interior of the ship. "Stap in!" calls the pilot. "This is going to hurt." Due to unforeseen weather patterns, the ship's angle of decent is much more severe than the pilot had planned for. Moreover, multiple maneuvering repulsors were damaged during the initial stages of reentry, sending the ship careening toward the ground. There is little the pilot can do to control the descent. At this point, the heroes have the chance to make a big difference in how severe the crash is. Allow each hero to take a single action to aid in the landing of the careening ship. Below are a few examples of the kinds of things the heroes can do to help with the landing, but they are by no means every possible measure that can be taken; if your heroes come up with creative solutions, don't be afraid to improvise. * A hero Trained in Mechanics can attempt to repair some of the maneuvering repulsors that burned out during atmospheric entry. A DC 19 Mechanics check restores some maneuverability that had been lost. * A hero Trained in Pilot can attempt to take the Copilot seat, assisting the Clone Pilot in the descent. A DC 14 Pilot check helps level the angle of descent, reducing the chances of a fatal crash. * A hero Trained in Use Computer can operate the ship's sensors, calculating a better approach vector given the new circumstances. A successful DC 19 Use Computer check not only calculates a new approach, it also grants any hero acting as Copilot a +2 circumstance bonus on a Pilot check. * A hero Trained in Treat Injury can prepare the ship's passengers for a hard landing. A DC 24 Treat Injury check allows the hero to administer sedatives and prepare protective gear, helping reduce the chance of injury on impact. * A hero Trained in Use the Force can use his or her skill in manipulating objects telekinetically to hold the ship together and prevent further damage. A successful DC 24 Use the Force check allows the hero to keep any other external pieces from being torn off during the landing. If the heroes are successful in at least three of these Skill Checks, read the following aloud: The ship plunges toward the ground at a steep angle, and the pilot yells a battle cry as he pulls back on the yoke. The ship lurches upon impact with the ground, and threatens to rattle itself apart as it digs a deep furrow in the ground. After what seems like hours but is really less than a minute, the dropship comes to a halt. Long moments of silence follow, until Commander Husk calls out to the cabin, "Everyone 100 percent?" Within moments, the remaining Clone Troopers and Clone Commandos all signal that they are fine, and bright moonlight streams into the ship's passenger hold as one of the side doors is forced open. If the heroes do not succeed in at least three Skill Checks to reduce the severity of the crash, read the following text instead: The ship plunges toward the ground at a steep angle, and the pilot yells a battle cry as he pulls back on the yoke. The ship lurches upon impact with the ground, and threatens to rattle itself apart as it digs a deep furrow in the ground. After what seems like hours but is really less than a minute, the dropship comes to a halt. Long moments of silence follow, until Commander Husk calls out to the cabin, "Everyone 100 percent?" A few voices answer in the affirmative, btu there is silence from others. One of the Clone Commandos looks up from where he is hunched over another clone. "Looks like some of our boys are on permanent R&R." Once the side door of the ship opens, letting the bright moonlight in, you see that only two of the six Clone Troopers survived the crash, and that the pilot was killed as well. Welcoming Committee Unfortunately for the heroes, a downed dropship is not the end of their tribulations. A Weakened Roggwart from Vendaxa was accidently released from captivity during the Separatist invasion, and it has sought refuge in the wilds nearby. Unfortunately, the sound of a crash and of small and delicious humanoids exiting the crashed ship have attracted its attention. As the heroes and clones are removing their supplies from the LAAT/s Gunship, the Weakened Roggwart roars to announce its presence. Tactical Encounter The Weakened Roggwart has been living off of small animals in the wilds of Tirahnn for weeks, and it is hungry for something larger than the local wildlife. Run the Drop Zone encounter before proceeding. Development With the Weakened Roggwart slain or otherwise subdued, the mission can begin. The twinkling lights of the capital city glimmer in the night, only klicks away according to Commander Husk, and the Clone Commandos have their own mission to perform. As they unload BARC Speeders from the hold of the dropship and begin assembling them, Commander Husk hands the heroes a Personal Holoprojector with a three-dimensional topographical map of their surrounding area, pulled from the sensor banks of the LAAT/s Gunship. He informs the heroes that if they set out now, they should reach the city before dawn, making it easier to avoid notice by Separatist sentries. If the Clone Troopers survived, they load up as much as they can carry and set off to make a base camp in the nearby foliage. Since they would be recognized inside the city, they prepare to hunker down and wait for the invasion to begin. The Clone Commando demolitions officer rigs the LAAT/s Gunship with explosives, and once everyone is safely clear he blasts the dropship into so much scrap metal, preventing the sensitive information it might be carrying from falling into Separatist hands. With that, Commander Husk dons his stealth armor helmet and turns to the heroes. "Good luck," he calls, "And watch out for the clankers." Finding Commander Zolghast Once the heroes have made their way into the capital city, their first task is to find Commander Zolghast. Based on what they were told during their briefing, Zolghast is a paranoid man, but he is also the only person on the planet with access to the firing codes for the Planetary Ion Cannon. Zolghast has commandeered a small building that was once a police outpost in Tirahnn's main financial district. The building has been converted into a defensible bunker by the paranoid commander, and now it is defended by Battle Droids and the commander's two Geonosian Bodyguards. From the bunker, Zolghast issues commands remotely, only occasionally venturing out to make sure that everything is running smoothly at the Planetary Ion Cannon. The heroes need to find Zolghast, and they have several avenues available to them to accomplish this. The following are some explanations of the most common methods the heroes might use to find out where Zolghast is hiding. Any heroes can use the Gather Information Skill to find Commander Zolghast. Their inquiries lead them to a Draethos woman named Shara-Or who was once a police officer who lost her job when Zolghast ousted her from command of the building that would become his bunker. Shara-Or has been working as a private security officer in one of the skyscrapers owned by TaggeCo. A successful Gather Information check points the heroes in her direction; alternatively, they might use other Skills, pay out bribes, or find other means of locating Shara-Or. She's none too pleased with being displaced by the Separatist leader, and willingly tells the heroes the general location and information about Zolghast's bunker. She's bitter, and she wants to see Tirahnn liberated by the Republic, so the heroes should have no fear of revealing their identities or their mission to her. Alternatively, the heroes might decide to ambush a Separatist patrol and get the information out of them. Most Droids on the planet are controlled by one of the Lucrehulk-Class Droid Control Ships orbiting the planet, and most cannot willingly reveal the location of Zolghast's bunker. However, ambushing a Battle Droid patrol does open up the option of tapping into their internal computer systems to try and retrieve data. Most Battle Droid patrols on Tirahnn consist of eight B1-Series Battle Droids, two B2-Series Super Battle Droids, and either a T-Series Tactical Droid or a Commander OOM-Series Battle Droid. The memory banks of T-Series Tactical Droids and Commander OOM-Series Battle Droids contain basic information that can be used to triangulate Zolghast's bunker; retrieving that data requires a DC 19 Use Computer check. If your heroes choose neither of these two methods, here are some of the most pertinent facts about Zolghast's hiding place that can help you figure out how to adjudicate their efforts. * Zolghast spends the majority of his time in the bunker. His food and supplies are brought to him, and he sleeps on a bed that slides out from the wall. * Zolghast tells no one the location of his bunker, except for those who already know: the police that once occupied the bunker, his superiors in the fleet above, his personal servant Droid that brings him supplies, and a small number of Confederacy officers on the ground. * The bunker is connected to the Ion Cannon Control Room directly by underground tunnel. Zolghast never exists the front door of his bunker; if he must leave, he travels to the Planetary Ion Cannon, exiting its structure to hide the presence of his bunker. * The Battle Droids that occupy the bunker, and the Lucrehulk-Class Droid Control Ship that commands them, are the only Droids and computers that know Zolghast's true location at any time. * Zolghast occasionally issues orders directly to patrols in the city via computer in order to protect the bunker from imagined threats. Tactical Encounter With knowledge of Zolghast's bunker in hand, the heroes can attempt to capture the commander and his firing codes. The commander rarely leaves the facility, bringing several days' worth of rations with him at a time to minimize the amount of time he must spend unprotected. When the heroes arrive, they find the bunker sealed up tightly. Though they may be able to talk their way inside, given Zolghast's paranoia there is a good chance he will command his Battle Droids to simply open fire. Run the Zolghast's Bunker encounter before proceeding. Development With Commander Zolghast subdued and the firing codes for the Planetary Ion Cannon in hand, the heroes also make another discovery: an underground tunnel leading from the bunker to a secret entrance of The Ion Cannon. Although Zolghast denies knowledge of it, the passageway twists and turns under the streets of Tirahnn until it reaches a secret basement in the Ion Cannon Control Room. The heroes can use this to gain access to The Ion Cannon, without having to go through the front doors. However, this secret entrance is guarded (As they may later discover), whereas going through the front doors, while more difficult, allows them to bypass this encounter. Continued in Part 2: The Ion Cannon